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17.25 We'll wrap things up for the day there - but before we go, this summary of the day's Clearing by Jessica Moore is a must-read. Lots of universities seemed to be holding back places today, no doubt waiting to see how the new admissions and grading rules as well as tuition fees will pan out, so make sure to check through our Clearing listings again tomorrow, and visit our University Clearing section for all the latest news and analysis.

Thanks for reading, and good luck if you're trying to find a place for this September.

17.00 Our Clearing 2012 Course Finder Search is back up and running now, and will continue to provide access to listings throughout the Clearing period up until September 20.

Academic disciplines such as mathematics, further maths, physics and chemistry all featured among the 10 fastest growing A-level subjects in Britain this year.

According to figures, almost 86,000 teenagers studied maths alone – the second most popular subject in the sixth-form after English – and more than 49,000 took exams in chemistry.

The growth is believed to be driven by the recession as sixth-formers increasingly focus on courses more likely to lead to a decent job.

It also reflects demand among university admissions tutors for students to stretch themselves by taking the most difficult sixth-form subjects.

Some institutions have already drawn up subject “black-lists”, meaning students taking more than one A-level in areas such as media studies, dance and sports studies could be automatically barred.

16.40 As the nation's students begin to head to pubs and bars to celebrate or commiserate over their results, here's a look back at the delighted and, in some cases, shocked reactions of those picking up their grades this morning.

James Wilkinson, who received five A* grades, celebrates at Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School in Holland Park, west London (Paul Grover)

Students react after receiving their A level results at Harris City Academy Crystal Palace school in south London (Reuters/Ki Price)

16.30 Remember if you have been lucky enough to secure a place through Clearing today when speaking with a university admissions office that your place is still contingent on you formally applying through Ucas Track from 5.00pm this afternoon.

And if you haven't, don't panic - the deadline for new applications through Clearing isn't until September 20, and even beyond that you can continue adding new choices through Clearing until October 22.

Of course there's always the option of reapplying next year too - something which anyone with ABB should certainly consider, as the threshold for uncapped students is lowered further next year.

Bucks New University has had this to say about the current AAB+ admissions cap exception:

We are admitting additional AAB+ students through Clearing but this has hade no impact on our ability to offer places to applicants with a lower grade profile.

We've had some applicants trade up to the University using adjustment but nobody looking to leave us."

16.15 Elsewhere Universities UK chief executive Nicola Dandridge has been pondering the effects of the removal of admissions caps on students acheiving AAB or higher - which according to her hasn't quite gone to plan:

There were always going to be a number of variables to consider with this new system.

What is emerging is a lower number of students securing AAB grades than had been anticipated. We do not yet know the reasons for this.

For those students who have missed their A-level grades, universities will be doing everything to ensure that the substantial number of places that they are still available in Clearing are made available to them.

This will not affect those students who have secured their predicted grades – their places are confirmed.”

16.05 Earlier today we reported on the rise in fortunes for physics degrees - something which has been attributed in recent years to the "Brian Cox effect". However you look at it, the number of pupils who have chosen to sit physics exams has increased for six consecutive years now, with 34,509 students taking physics A-levels this year.

However a partnership of schools called the Stimulating Physics Network (SPN) - a collective of 276 state schools which was designed to help science teachers inspire students into taking more interest in physics - is claiming a stake in that success.

A press release put out by the organisation notes physics uptake at AS level has increased by 30 per cent in the past year among its schools, compared with 1.7 per cent nationwide.

Not the Brian Cox effect? (Jay Williams)

Charles Tracy, Head of Education pre-19 at the Institute of Physics, said this:

We’ve been waiting to receive the data before making any claims about the success of the Stimulating Physics Network.

Now, however, we are in no doubt about how great a success it is proving to be. We’ve found a formula that works and we’re very proud of it.

Could something similar be the answer for foreign language subjects' woes?

In fact, overall, fewer applicants than last year have had their places confirmed and, as a result of the minister's tinkering with student number controls, many now face an anxious wait.

"No amount of wishing on the minister's part will stop thousands of students having their choice of course restricted by a squeeze on numbers, the removal of almost all undergraduate teaching funding, and massive loans that encourage them to make decisions based on finances rather than ambition or ability.

15.30 Shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg has sent out a congratulatory message to sixth-formers across the country who have picked up their A-level results today - although he hasn't passed up the opportunity to take a bit of credit for his party:

Congratulations to all those who have got the results they wanted today. Whether your final marks were what you were hoping for or not, we wish you every success for the future.

It is great to see so many young people doing so well. Pupils getting their A-level results today spent 11 out of 13 years of their school education with a Labour government.

Most pupils getting results today will have made their subject choices in 2010.

15.10 Another heart-warming A-level story has been reported on by Press Association. Eighteen-year-old Jamie Green from Malton in North Yorkshire, who suffers from cerebral palsy and has been confined to a wheelchair all his life, was faced with a difficult decision in June - he had the opportunity to carry the Olympic torch in recognition of his work for Whizz-Kids, a charity that provides wheelchairs for disabled children, just days before his A-level exams.

Fortunately he managed to squeeze in both, and found out today that he'd managed two A*s and two As:

It's been a fantastic summer.

I had the torch-carrying event on the Monday, then I had my French exam and English exam later that week, so it was quite a week but a great experience.

I find it's best to keep yourself busy.

14.55 Fellow comedian Jack Whitehall has also found time to wish A-level students the best... and make some ominous predictions for those studying drama:

<noframe>Twitter: Jack Whitehall - Fellow drama students hope you get the A level results you want! And you've found nice restaurants to work in for the next five years!</noframe>

14.45 We've had advice from Ucas, the Government's education minister and universities so far today, but notably none from controversial long-haired comedians. Fresh from his rather flamboyant turn in the Olympics closing ceremony, Russell Brand has been dispensing words of questionable wisdom on Twitter:

<noframe>Twitter: Russell Brand - A-Level students, good luck today- I didn't get any and still ended up with a job as a psychedelic bus driver.</noframe>

14.35 We're starting to get reports that Ucas Track is down, while others are saying it just isn't updating. One student has told us that she is now in the uncomfortable position of not being able to confirm her Adjustment place until tomorrow. Are you experiencing similar problems? Tweet us @tele_education to let us know.

14.30 The London Paralympic Games may not have started yet, but 18-year-old Jess Harper is already planning for Rio 2016. The teenager from London secured straight As this morning and will now go to Brown University, an Ivy League institution based in Rhode Island, USA, where she hopes to benefit from its disability swimming events.

They've got a great swimming programme over there and the coaches are really brilliant.

I'm hoping that will give me the boost I need to make it for 2016.

Jess attended Putney High School, and is ranked 19 in the world for the 100-metre butterfly event. Her lower left arm failed to develop before she was born.

14.20 The Telegraph's Clearing 2012 course vacancy search smartphone app and mobile site have also seen heightened demand this year - between 6.00am-8.00am this morning traffic was 85 per cent higher than the corresponding period last year.

14.10 Our Clearing analyst Jessica Moore has been speaking to more universities about their experiences today. Aberystwyth did not take part in Clearing in the last two years, but has found demand high this year having closed its initial application process January 15 specifically in order to use Clearing.

Meanwhile the University of Bedfordshire has reported a busy initial Clearing period, and intends to keep its Clearing window open beyond the point at which its places for capped students (those acheiving below AAB) are filled:

... we won't know how quickly places are likely to fill up for several days yet.

"However, we will continue to advertise courses in Clearing because we do not wish to disadvantage those students who may have AAB results and who fall outside the student number cap."

The first is that to be of value, a qualification must be challenging. An Olympic medal is hard won. So too should be top grades at A-level.

That is why Michael Gove’s determination to deal with grade inflation is laudable, reflected in the news that the number of A grades awarded is down for the first time and only two per cent of candidates secured three A* grades.

The decision to reduce the number of modules taken as part of each A-level from six to four and to make these more demanding is another significant step forward, as is the direct involvement of universities in developing more stimulating A-level courses.

Holly Mizser-Jones, Abbey Latham, Bethany Welch and Nico Howells-Green open their A-Level results at Brighton College in East Sussex (Christopher Pledger)

The traditional gender divide in education was dismantled at the top of the academic spectrum this year as boys registered more A*s than girls, it was revealed.

Data published by Britain’s major exam boards revealed that that gap in the proportion of A grades had also narrowed this year compared with 2011.

Head teachers’ leaders suggested that boys had been motivated by the challenge of achieving the new A* – introduced for the first time two years ago – combined with growing competition for places at leading universities.

It is also believed that an increase in the take up of maths and science – traditionally seen as “male subjects” – may also contribute to the narrowing of scores at the top-end. But girls continued to dominate other grades.

13.30 It's a difficult sight for most parents to witness their children panicking ahead of receiving their A-level results, but for Stephen Ridley it was "agony". His 18-year-old daughter Imogen had taken an A-level in religious studies in order to follow the family tradition by studying theology at Oxford - and as the deputy head of her school, Barnard Castle School in County Durham, he knew she'd attained an A* 24 hours before she could find out.

Fortunately, Imogen seems to have taken a mature approach to her father's vow of silence:

I didn't press dad because I wanted it to be a surprise.

But it was such a relief to finally get my results and I am absolutely thrilled to have got into Oxford.

13.15 British gymnast Danusia Francis - who was a reserve for Team GB in this summer's Olympics - had a double treat today. As well as getting the A-level results she needed, she seized a photo opportunity with double Olympic gold medallist rower Andy Triggs-Hodge, who is apparently a governer at her school:

Danusia Francis with Andy Triggs-Hodge (@danusiafrancis Twitter)

Congratulations to Danusia on her grades too:

<noframe>Twitter: Danusia Francis - Andy Hodge and me at results day! He is a governor at my school :) x <a href="http://t.co/Twz9qmN2" target="_blank">http://t.co/Twz9qmN2</a></noframe>

13.00 According to Brian Lightman, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, the success of boys in the A* category this year has been a direct result of efforts based on concern in previous years about their underacheivement:

A lot has been said about the gender gap and that message has obviously got through. Teachers have focused on boys' achievement.

Boys focus on short-term goals and see they need good grades. They will focus on that and that's good.

It's nice to see that boys and girls are almost neck-and-neck now. We certainly don't want the gaps in achievement.

12.50 Results day just wouldn't be complete without a gallery of grinning students clutching their scores for the camera - take a look through ours here:

12.45 Our graphics gurus have been at it again, and have put together this chart showing how grades have dropped off from last year in the "A or higher" category. And don't worry - there haven't been as many U grades as it might seem at first glance - the bars are cumulative, so they indicate the percentage of students who attained that grade or higher.

As you can see, there isn't a huge amount in it, although the A* drop is discernible - and remember this is against a backdrop of over 20 years of consecutive rises:

12.40 Interestingly, analysis is also showing that the fall in A grades has been higher in Northern Ireland (2.6 per cent) than in England (0.3 per cent) or Wales (0.3 per cent).

According to Anne Marie Duffy, director of qualifications at Northern Ireland's awarding body, this is because the number of pupils staying in secondary education until A-levels in the province has been steadily increasing. Entries for A-level exams have increased by nearly 3,000 since 2008.

...as the size of the group taking A-levels has grown, the range of ability of the students taking the exams has widened too.

Traditional A-level disciplines such as French and German are in “freefall” following a record decline in entry rates over the last decade, it emerged.

Britain’s biggest exam boards called for a bail-out package similar to that used to rescue ailing European economies to restore confidence in language courses.

It was suggested that major universities should support the subjects by requiring more students take languages at school or college as a condition of entry.

According to figures, French and German entries dropped to a new low this year, while the number of students taking Spanish exams also fell sharply, despite a recent resurgence in popularity for the subject.

12.10 Still on the Clearing front, we can reveal that the most searched-for universities on our Clearing 2012 Course Vacancy Search this year, so far today at least, have been (in order) University of Manchester, University of Exeter and University of Nottingham. Tweet us @tele_education if you've had any success securing Clearing places at those or other institutions.

12.01 Some interesting Clearing information from our expert Jessica Moore. The University of East Anglia has more than twice as many vacancies as last year, but claims to have been been receiving Clearing applications from candidates with three A*s.

Meanwhile Roehampton reports that Clearing applicants seem to have put much more thought into their phone calls than in previous years, and are better informed about what is available and how Clearing works generally.

And University of West London is reporting that its phone lines are busier than last year too.

11.45 Just 15 minutes left to ask your questions to David Willetts over on our live Q&A webchat.

11.40 Aww. Tom, a customer services advisor manning the phonelines at Ucas, says it has been a rewarding day so far - and that the "majority are happy calls":

11.30 Over on our live webchat David Willetts, the universities minister, has just been asked whether the drop in top grades means students are "not working as hard as before". Here's what he had to say:

Students have worked hard again this year as in previous years, but the pass rate is not going to be exactly the same from year to year.I believe it is a 0.4% fall in A grades this year compared with last.

11.25 Didn't get that place at uni? What to do next is one of those pesky life-altering decisions, but thankfully we've put together a flow chart to help you through it. Try our What to do if you don't get a place infographic now - it's well worth a go, even if you do end up going down the pub...

11.20 The government's move to curb grade inflation by changing grading rules this year has left a sour taste for some. Jan Thompson, director of the Association of Professional Tutors, had this to say:

"So the critics of grade inflation have got what they wanted. The dip in the number of top grades being awarded will neutralise some of the accusations of A-levels being dumbed down.

"But it will also leave tens of thousands of young people - and their parents - in a state of panic today.

"New rules on the offers that universities can make mean that more students than ever will lose out on their first choice institution.

11.10 The drop in top grades might be making all the headlines this morning, but there are plenty of happier stories out there as well. The headmaster at Lodge Park Technology College in Corby, Northamptonshire says grades are up among his pupils:

11.00 We've been covering various comments on the day by Universities Minister David Willetts throughout the morning - but now's the chance to put your questions to him directly. Head over to our live Q&A webchat with the man responsible for the country's unviersity policy now - he'll be taking questions from 11.00am-12.00noon.

10.55 The Southern Daily Echo hasbrought to light the acheivements of 14-year-old maths genius Wajih Ahmed of Barton Peveril in Hampshire. Wajih is awaiting his physics and economics AS results today, but won't be too nervous - he already knows he will become one of the UK's youngest-ever university students when he goes to study economics at Southampton University, thanks to his A*s in maths and further maths, and an A in chemistry from last year.

He'd better watch out though - his 12-year-old brother Zohaib already has an A in A-level history at the age of nine.

By far the most searched-for course so far today is Law, at nearly 6 per cent of all searches for Clearing spaces by subject. The next most popular is Psychology, which has been the subject of choice for 3.95 per cent of all searches.

Remember you can use the search tool to check which courses have vacancies live, and it will provide you with the relevant admissions department's phone number and course codes once you've identified the ones that suit you.

10.20 The impact of the AAB admissions cap change is still speculation at this stage, but David Matthews of Times Higher Education isn't convinced:

<noframe>Twitter: David Matthews - I can report that there is no claxon or gong that goes off when an AAB+ student calls. All are treated equally, they say. <a href="http://search.twitter.com/search?q=clearing" target="_blank">#clearing</a></noframe>

10.15 The brilliantly named head of exam board Edexcel, Mr Ziggy Liaquat, has praised students across the country for a "very strong set of results", adding that students "should be very proud".

Elsewhere exam board AQA's chief executive Andrew Hall was in a slightly gloomier mood, bemoaning the drop in the number of stuents taking A-levels as foreign languages.

"There is a crisis here in modern foreign languages. We have the euro economy in crisis - I think modern foreign languages are in the same place."

10.05 Here's an unusual results day story - Emily Wilson, 18, is one step closer to becoming an Apache helicopter pilot - having today achieved an A* in biology and an A in chemistry and physics, she has been accepted to study biology at the University of Edinburgh and will then head to Sandhurst for her military training. She originally wanted to be a vet.

Emily Wilson, 18, hopes to become one of the elite few chosen to fly the attack aircraft, and would be following in the footsteps of Prince Harry. (PA)

09.50 Good news for Olympic bronze medallist Tom Daley, who can add an A in Spanish to his diving honours:

<noframe>Twitter: Tom Daley - I got an A in Spanish! Overall I have A* photography(A2), A spanish(A2) and A maths(AS) :) thanks 2 <a href="http://www.twitter.com/PlymouthColleg1" target="_blank">@PlymouthColleg1</a> :D <a href="http://t.co/d8L9LSgk" target="_blank">http://t.co/d8L9LSgk</a></noframe>

09.45 Not content with our record-braking haul of 29 gold medals at London 2012, Team GB are aiming high in A-level results this year too:

We'll try to find out how those athletes have done today - tweet in @tele_education if you have any details.

09.35 Some other interesting trends have come out from this year's results. Boys pulled ahead of girls in the new A* grade category, with 8 per cent reaching the top bracket against 7.9 per cent among the fairer sex - though girls continued to claim a far bigger share of A to E grades.

Meanwhile the decline in studying foreign languages continued for another year, offset by increases in maths, chemistry and physics - no doubt that 'Brian Cox effect' at work again.

09.30 Big news from the examination boards' conference - the number of students receiving top marks at A-level has dropped for the first time in more than 20 years as a result of the Government's new crackdown on grade inflation. Here's education editor Graeme Paton on the development:

Just over one-in-four exams was graded at least an A as year-on-year results fell by a record margin.

Figures published by examination boards showed that 26.6 per cent of test papers were awarded A grades – a drop of 0.4 percentage points in 12 months.

Some 7.9 per cent of entries gained an elite A* grade – only the third time the mark had been used to pick out the brightest candidates – compared with 8.2 per cent in 2011.

Despite a decline in top-end grades, it was also announced that the overall pass mark increased marginally to 97.8 per cent – the 30th successive annual rise.

The publication of grades for around 300,000 students in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was expected to trigger a desperate scramble for places through clearing – the traditional system operated by UCAS to distribute spare courses to students.

It is feared that rising numbers of students will have missed out on their first choice university place after grades stalled.

09.20 More figures are starting to trickle through now. There are 162,000 students eligible for Clearing this year. As we heard earlier, there are 25,000 courses offering places in Clearing, but of course some of those will have multiple places so it's still too early to tell how tough the competition will be.

09.15 BBC News's trial-by-opening your results live on air is now in Llangollen, where it's still smiles and A grades all round. Maybe a good trick to ensure you get the grades you need is to head for the nearest TV crew before you open your envelope?

09.10 Most of the speculation this morning seems to be surrounding whether tuition fees are responsible for that seven per cent decrease in offers this year. We put that question to education minister David Willetts earlier - here's what he had to say:

So apparently it's the national birth rate after all.

09.00 Channel 4's news presenter Jon Snow has been on Radio 4 to explain how doing badly at A-levels didn't seem to hold him back:

I got one A-level and it was a C in English. I failed in Geography and Biology. I felt a failure, and the worst thing was telling my parents, but I realised I wanted to go to university.

It wasn't the best time of my life... there's life after A-levels!

Snow ended up attending the University of Liverpool.

08.50 Coming up around 9.30am we'll have the outcome from the annual exam board's press conference, including the breakdown of A-level results by subjects and gender - the full results will be available online and in tomorrow's paper.

Meanwhile Sky are also in Birmingham interviewing students as they open their A-level results. Asked about tuition fees, one university-bound student told the channel: "It's making me nervous, but I'm just going to go for it."

At the moment applications do seem to be down slightly though, with the number of firm offers today down 6.95 per cent on last year's figure.

08.40 Judging by Twitter the results are starting to flood in now, while the news channels are putting more poor students through the presumably terrifying process of opening their results live on air. Nobody seems to have missed their offers yet at least.

Of course, even if you didn't get the grades your offer required there is still a chance your university will offer you a place:

08.25 A quick reminder that the Telegraph is Ucas's exclusive media partner for Clearing again this year - which means you can search for Clearing course vacancies live on our website now, as well as picking up our first free Clearing listings supplement with your copy of the Telegraph newspaper this morning. We've even got a free Clearing search app.

08.15 As results are opened across the country, those Ucas phone lines must be starting to get busier now. If you're trying to get through, here's a video clip of what's happening at the other end of the line - our camera team are all set up at Ucas's headquarters in Cheltenham.

That social media team look relaxed at the moment don't they? We'll return to see how things progress as the day goes on.

08.05 The initial, precise-sounding figures from Ucas are that 357,915 students have been accepted by universities this morning - a seven per cent drop on last year's corresponding figure.

08.00 Ucas chief executive Mary Curnock Cook has been interviewed on the morning news live from Ucas's Cheltenham HQ:

There is no change to the [Clearing application] process this year. I've just seen a tweet saying 'I love Ucas' - there's no queue on the phonelines at the moment...

We've got over 25,000 courses showing openings for Ucas applicants, which is up on last year. There's around 100,000 people who could go into Clearing.

This year, Clearing is a journey into the unknown for both students and universities.

The government has introduced a new rule, allowing institutions to admit an unlimited number of students gaining AAB grades or higher in their A-levels. The number of students gaining below ABB, meanwhile, remains strictly capped.

The result is that a number of Russell Group institutions are offering Clearing vacancies to top-scoring students this year. Other institutions are competing for their business, however.

All this may encourage students with AAB+ grades to ‘trade up’ through Adjustment – a system that allows them to shop around for alternative opportunities through Clearing while retaining their firm offer.

Students that narrowly miss their top conditional offer, however, may find less wriggle room. If a university accepts a student with an AAB+ offer who achieves ABB-, this student takes one of that institutions capped places. Some may already have met their quota.

Deferring could be an option. In 2013, universities will be allowed to admit unrestricted numbers of ABB+ students.

The number of exams awarded at least an A grade is set to be held at last year’s standard when more than one-in-four test papers was awarded the top mark.

Overall, it is estimated that just over eight per cent of A-levels will be given an elite A* – the new “super grade” introduced for the first time in 2010 to mark out the brightest candidates.

As up to 300,000 teenagers across England, Wales and Northern Ireland prepared to receive their results on Thursday, experts warned that top grades could even drop in some subjects as part of a toughening up of the examinations system.

It may lead to rising numbers of school leavers narrowly missing out on university offers and being forced to enter the clearing system, which matches students with spare places.

07.25 Universities minister David Willetts has just spoken on the morning news bulletins. Asked about the impact of tuition fees, he sounded bullish about applications this year:

Here at Ucas there's already 350,000 students across the UK who are going to secure the places they're applying for.

I think we're going to have more applicants than places so I don't think tuitition fees are putting people off.

07.15 BBC News has just had two students at Birmingham Metropolitan College opening their grades live on camera - nerve-wracking stuff, but luckily it's a happy ending, with top grades and a few tears all round.

Phone lines at Ucas are now open if yours haven't gone so well and you need advice about Clearing: 0871 468 0468

More undergraduate places need to be created at “heavily oversubscribed” universities to enable thousands of bright teenagers to attend, according to David Willetts.

He said vice-chancellors should take advantage of Government reforms designed to give universities in England more freedom to recruit students with the best A-level grades.

Some leading institutions, including Oxbridge, have resisted pressure to expand amid fears over crowded seminars and the cost of subsiding extra students.

But in an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Mr Willetts called on the most popular institutions to “find ways in which they can finance growth in the number of undergraduates” to give more young people the “opportunity to go to a prestigious university”.

07.00 Good morning and welcome to our live blog of A-level results day and the start of Clearing 2012.

Around 330,000 sixth-formers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland receive their A-level results this morning. For some that will mean joyfully leaping into the air, straight A* grades in hand. For others, the prospect of University Clearing. Either way, those who begin university next month will be among the first batch of undergraduates to pay under the new tuition fees system, which sees a maximum rate of £9000 per year introduced for the first time.

If you or your children are receiving results or going through Clearing this year, tweet @tele_education with your experiences.